Series ratings weren't a "primetime success'

FINE TUNING

October 31, 2006|By Jay Hart Of The Morning Call

Fox can spin the World Series ratings however they want -- "Once again the World Series has proven to be a primetime success as Fox out-rated every other network all five nights in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic," Fox Sports president Ed Goren said -- but the reality is more people watched ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" than Game 3 when the series was tied 1-1.

The 2006 World Series came to a close with the lowest rating ever, drawing a 10.1 rating, or a 9-percent drop from last year's Fall Classic, which held the lowest-rated distinction for only one year.

It's questionable whether anything can be done about the downward trend -- lagging interest in baseball isn't necessarily a network problem -- but here are two suggestions:

1. Start the games sooner -- We've all heard this one, but it does make sense that, if children are falling asleep before the games end, they probably aren't growing up to be fans (i.e. future viewers) of the sport.

2. Eliminate rapid-fire free agency -- We've already crossed this bridge, so there's nothing to be done, but there is truth to the argument that free agency has killed the relationship between teams and viewers, especially when it's not their favorite team playing.

Take Gonzaga. Sure, it's college basketball, but the Zags, tucked into the Pacific Northwest, are popular because their players stick around long enough for us to get to know them. This time builds relationships, which builds feelings from which we develop a need to watch.

Preparation J: Now we know what Jimmy Johnson does the rest of the week when he's not on the set at Fox's "NFL Sunday" -- nothing.

Following a segment of Jimmy's 10 best and worst moments of the season, Howie Long questioned No. 6 -- Dallas as a debacle, in which Johnson said. "Big D's biggest disappointment -- surprisingly, the defense in shambles."

"My TV show can't affect me like the Eagles can," said a disgruntled Cramer following the Eagles loss.

Cramer, who's from Montgomery County and is an Eagles season ticket holder, equated football to business, only he said football is more forgiving.

"In Wall Street, you have to have some level of accountability. If you don't deliver, you get fired. And it's not like you get a whole season to do it. You get a quarter."

Lock of the week: I say it every week, but Charley Casserly's spot on CBS's "NFL Today" is the most informative segment of any of the network pre-game shows. This week's topics included Chargers' linebacker Shawne Merriman and his appeal for a failed steroid test -- he'll lose his appeal, according to Casserly -- and why Drew Bledsoe got benched -- he strays from the gameplan too often, said Casserly.

Nice timing: With Liberty driving into Easton territory Friday night, TV2 Sports' Mike Zambelli thought it the perfect time to clue in viewers about the Red Rovers' stingy defense.

"Of course, it must be noted that this Easton defense, the first team, has not been scored on all year. They have seven shutouts wins," Zambelli said, cutting himself off as the next play began. "Here's [Liberty quarterback Dan] Persa. That's going to come to an end right now. Liberty touchdown."

Late in the fourth quarter, Zambelli correctly recalled a converted fourth-and-three play way back in the first quarter by Liberty as the play of the game. Persa scrambled on the play, buying himself enough time to find an open receiver. Moments later, the Hurricanes scored to go up 14-0.

Prime-eau time? After the Flyers' 8-2 loss on Saturday, Comcast SportsNet reporter John Boruk asked Simon Gagne about what was said in a postgame, closed-door meeting. Gagne, as he should, wouldn't comment.

Too bad, right?

Not so fast. Former Flyers captain Keith Primeau, who's certainly been in plenty of these sort of meetings, is now a Comcast analyst. They'll just ask him, which is what Al Morganti did. Unfortunately, Primeau didn't tells us anything more than we already knew -- that the players need to take ownership of the result and that they need to stick together.

We'll give Primeau a pass this time. He is new on the job.

Bleep off: If you were watching CBS's "60 Minutes" report on Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis, hopefully your kids weren't listening. In the quest to tell the story, 60 Minutes didn't hold anything back, including airing several profanity-laced tirades by Weis on the sidelines. I'm no prude, but the bleeps CBS used were as effective as trying to cover up Dolly Parton's chest with a pair of postage stamps.

Story of the day: According to the Boston Globe's Bob Ryan, who appeared as a guest on ESPN's "Outside the Lines," Red Auerbach was in a coma a while back. When he came out of it, a friend sitting at his bedside said to him, "Red, we thought we were going to lose you."